WESTSIDE Gazette

What WESTSIDE Gazette does

The Westside Gazette is a privately held, African American owned and operated community newspaper founded in 1971 and headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It publishes print and digital editions covering local, national, and international news, politics, entertainment, sports, lifestyle, health, religion, and Black history for South Florida's African American community. The publication positions itself as Broward County's oldest and largest African American newspaper and distributes content through a multi-channel network that includes its website (thewestsidegazette.com), an e-Edition, social media (Facebook, X/Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest), email newsletters, and physical distribution through churches, libraries, colleges, mail subscriptions, and retail outlets.

The business operates on a WordPress-based publishing platform with no proprietary technology stack, no mobile app, and no disclosed API or SDK. Product surface has expanded beyond print to include podcasts ('Just A Lil Bit' and 'Two Minute Warning Series') and livestream content, indicating incremental moves into multimedia. The company is a member of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), an industry association representing over 200 Black-owned media companies in the U.S.

Revenue is generated primarily through print and digital advertising, supported by a Media Kit and a separate Political Rate Sheet targeting political advertisers. Specific pricing is not publicly disclosed. The audience is a single primary segment — South Florida African American consumers — for whom the publication cites a combined buying power of approximately $70 billion annually. No external investment, venture funding, or M&A activity is referenced in the available sources, and the publication appears to operate as an independent, owner-operated enterprise.

Name

WESTSIDE Gazette

Legal name

The Westside Gazette

Website

https://thewestsidegazette.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1971

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Westside Gazette is a privately held African American owned-and-operated community newspaper founded in 1971 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, serving South Florida's Black community with print, digital, and podcast news coverage funded primarily by advertising.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Newspaper

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAJADAG

Community, Ethnic & Multilingual News Publishers

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/News Publishing (Newspapers, Digital Newsrooms, Wire Services)

SECONDARYMPAJADAB

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/News Publishing (Newspapers, Digital Newsrooms, Wire Services)

Keywords

• Community newspaper
• African American press
• Local news media
• Black community journalism
• Print and digital publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Fort Lauderdale

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Advertising: The newspaper generates revenue primarily through print and digital advertising. They offer political rate sheets and media kits for advertisers, with targeted advertising opportunities to their African American consumer base with significant buying power.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

WESTSIDE Gazette publishes a community newspaper in print and digital (e-Edition) formats covering local, national, and international news, politics, faith, health, entertainment, sports, lifestyle, and Black history for South Florida's African American community. The publication also produces original audio content including the "Just A Lil Bit" podcast and the "Two Minute Warning Series" livestream program, with revenue primarily generated through print and digital advertising sold to local businesses and political campaigns.

Product overview

The Westside Gazette is a single, unified newspaper publication offering news and journalism content to South Florida's African American community. The publication provides coverage across multiple sections including News (National, Local, International), Entertainment, Politics, Sports, Lifestyle, Health, Religion, and Obituaries. The newspaper operates both print and digital (e-Edition) formats and generates revenue through advertising.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• WESTSIDE Gazette Newspaper The flagship weekly community newspaper covering local, national, and international news, politics, faith, health, entertainment, sports, lifestyle, opinion, and Black history, distributed in print to South Florida households and digitally via the e-Edition. Targeted at African American readers in Broward County and surrounding South Florida communities.
• Just A Lil Bit Podcast An audio podcast hosted by journalist Arri Henry that extends the Westside Gazette's community-driven content into on-demand audio format. Aimed at the same African American audience in South Florida that consumes the newspaper.
• Two Minute Warning Series A livestream video series produced by the Westside Gazette as part of its multimedia content slate, providing short-form news commentary and community-focused programming to its audience.

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Westside Gazette is a member of the NNPA, which represents over 200 Black-owned media companies across the United States. The NNPA conducts trade missions and collaborative initiatives including trips to locations like the ancient city of Ile-Ife for cultural events.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Los Angeles Sentinel: African American-owned weekly newspaper serving Los Angeles. Comparable on community-newspaper positioning, advertising-supported model, and editorial focus on Black civic life, culture, and politics.
• New York Amsterdam News: Long-running African American weekly newspaper covering New York City's Black community. Highly comparable business model: community news, advertising revenue, multi-decade brand legacy, political coverage, and similar print + digital distribution mix.
• The Chicago Defender: Historic African American newspaper serving the Chicago Black community with both print and digital editions. Directly comparable on legacy, audience (urban African American readers), and advertising-driven community-newspaper operations.
• The Atlanta Daily World: African American-owned newspaper serving metro Atlanta, one of the largest Black metro areas. Comparable on community-newspaper model, advertising monetization, and engagement with Black civic and cultural institutions.
• The Baltimore AFRO-American: Historic African American newspaper (founded 1892) covering the Baltimore / Mid-Atlantic Black community. Same ethnic-newspaper category, similar print+digital mix, similar advertising-driven economics, and shared reliance on Black-community readership and community-event involvement.
• The Philadelphia Tribune: One of the oldest continuously operating African American newspapers in the U.S., serving the Philadelphia market. Closely comparable on legacy brand, community-event integration, and advertising-led revenue model serving a Black urban audience.
• The Miami Times: African American-owned weekly newspaper serving Miami-Dade County, the adjacent South Florida market to Broward. Most directly comparable peer: same regional market, same ethnic-community press model, same advertising-driven revenue approach, similar event-sponsorship community engagement.

Emerging players

• The Grio: Digital-first Black-oriented news and culture site. Comparable on serving the African American audience and advertising-driven revenue, but differentiates as a national digital-native platform rather than a print-rooted local community newspaper.

Broad incumbents

• South Florida Sun-Sentinel: Major regional daily newspaper covering the same South Florida / Broward County geography. Comparable on geographic market and broad-news coverage but operates at much larger scale, serves a general audience, and is owned by a national media conglomerate (Tribune Publishing).
• Essence Communications (Essence Magazine / Essence.com): Iconic African American media brand spanning magazine, digital, and events. Comparable on targeting the African American consumer market and premium multicultural advertising relationships, but operates nationally at a much larger scale and across lifestyle rather than hard-news content.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/thewestsidegazette
• Facebookfacebook.com/thewestsidegazette
• Instagraminstagram.com/thewestsidegazette
• Pinterestpinterest.com/thewestsidegazette
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/westside-gazette

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WESTSIDE Gazette